Bad news for smear-Palin MSMers

The smear-Palin MSMers are counting on something they call “Troopergate” to help destroy the reputation and public career of Gov. Sarah Palin.

Mind you, most of the smear crowd has nothing personal against Palin. It’s just that she poses a threat to the presidential election chances of their candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, a long-time friend of racist Jeremiah Wright, terrorist Bill Ayers, and convicted felons Tony Rezko and Kwame Kilpatrick.

Well, we can all understand that. Now to the bad news for the smear crowd.

CNN Investigative Reporter Drew Griffin found - - -

The Alaska state trooper at the center of a probe into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power says he has “made mistakes, and I’ve learned from those mistakes.” But in an exclusive interview with us, Mike Wooten, Palin’s former brother-in-law, also denies some of the biggest allegations against him. . . . .

The story is how he married into, then divorced out of, Alaska’s first family. The trooper finds his life at the center of the one and only potential scandal I can find concerning Gov. Palin, John McCain’s choice for running mate.

The scandalous allegation is the governor used her power to try and get her sister’s ex fired. When that didn’t work, it’s alleged Gov. Palin fired the public safety commissioner [Walt Monegan].

In our interview, Wooten rattled off a disturbing number of “mistakes” he’s made in his career.

He admits tasering his stepson, illegally killing a moose and admits to multiple reprimands in his file. A state trooper investigation even found credible evidence he was drinking in his patrol car. . . .

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A Washington Post story goes to great lengths to minimize the “mistakes” Wooten made and winds up reporting - - -

"I would like to put this behind me and move on with my life," Trooper Mike Wooten said in an interview with the Washington Post. "I don't wish ill will on anyone. I think that the nomination that Sarah got is great for the state of Alaska. I wish her good luck and the family good luck. I honestly think that everyone involved in this wanted to put this beyond us." . . .

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Wooten sounds just like Duke President Richard Brodhead, disgraced and disbarred former Durham DA Mike Nifong, and the editorialists at the Raleigh N&O and the Durham H-S who did so much to enable the Duke witch hunt and the frame-up attempt and are now doing their best to sustain the cover-up.

They all want to move on.

What looks like the best and is certainly the most detailed “Troopergate” reporting I’ve found is Mata Harley’s carefully-sourced, link-rich post at the blog Flopping Aces.

Harley’s post includes an events timeline and a narrative with pertinent information most of MSM has failed to report.

All text which follows and all emphasis until the star line are from Harley’s post:

Per Col. Julia Grimes in the Fairbanks Newsminer on July 28, 2008… and showing how long this “scandal” has dragged out…

The record clearly indicates a serious and concentrated pattern of unacceptable, and at times, illegal activity occurring over a lengthy period, which establishes a course of conduct totally at odds with the ethics of our profession,” Col. Julia Grimes, then head of Alaska State Troopers, wrote in March 1, 2006, letter suspending Wooten for 10 days. After the union protested it, the suspension was reduced to five days.

She warned that if he messed up again, he’d be fired. …

Monegan’s “truth” problem

According to Monegan, he insists he was pressured by Todd Palin,“numerous times to talk about Wooten as well as Frank Bailey from the governor’s office and Commissioner of Administration Annete Krietzer who also pressured him to fire Wooten”.

If trooper recruitment and poor morale was one of Palin’s concern about Monegan’s performance, why would her husband Todd be doing the talking for Palin? And why would Palin send her husband… sans gubernatorial power… to convince Monegan to fire Wooten?

But the problem with Monegan’s charge is.… Todd Palin was *ordered* to talk to Monegan since Wooten was a potential threat against Alaska’s first family.

2. Todd Palin was ORDERED by the head of the Governor’s security detail, Special Agent Bob Cockrell, to discuss Trooper Wooten with Walt Monegan, as Wooten presented a credible threat to the Governor’s safety. Here’s a direct quote from Special Agent Cockrell, who is now providing security for his sixth consecutive governor:

“When made aware of the security concerns regarding a state trooper, I instructed the First Gentleman to contact the commissioner of Public Safety. It is standard protocol to ask every governor about any threats they perceive or have realized. “I will not hesitate to set the record straight in answering these false allegations by former Commissioner Monegan.” (emphasis added) ….

Harley’s entire post’s here.

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Comments:

If a state trooper with Wooten’s record married into Palin’s family and she did nothing to try to get the guy removed from a position where he could go out cruising on the highway with state police powers, MSM would be reporting another kind of “Troopergate scandal."

Easy prediction: There’s a lot more for us to learn about Wooten and he knows it isn’t good. That’s why he wants to move on.

Easy question: Why is a blogger like Harley bringing us such a detailed report? That’s supposed to be the NY Times, NPR, WaPo, and the rest of Obama’s Tank Corps’ job.